User:Grace McMeekin/sandbox

Development
Leslee Udwin’s interest in making the film was sparked firstly by the enormous amounts of people who protested in India for over a month following the rape. She wanted to help give the activists a platform on which their voices would be heard around the world. Secondly, she had a desire to understand the mentality of the rapists and her original focus was only the rape of Jyoti Singh.

Filming
Udwin wrote to the director general of Tihar Jail asking for permission to interview Jyoti Singh’s rapists as this was to be the heart of her documentary; she wanted to know why men raped women. She was granted access and filmed for thirty-one hours over seven days in prison, which she found particularly gruelling. One of the rapists refused to speak to her whilst Vinay Sharma and Pawan Gupta denied their involvement saying they weren’t on the bus that night. Mukesh Singh, the bus driver, readily answered Udwin’s questions and for this reason his interview was included in the film. Following these interviews her interest expanded to the wider patriarchal society and the part it plays in fuelling violence towards women and rape in India.

Post Production
Several clips had to be cut during editing. For example, an interview with one of the rapists revealed new information that was to be used in the ongoing case and therefore could not be shown in the film. Further interviews were cut as they were inappropriate to include; one interviewee asked for money on camera whilst the father and brother of another would not allow her to be involved in the film. Udwin says that she would have liked to have shown a photo of Jyoti Singh in the film but could not as not only were her parents against the idea, but it was against the law in India.